Supreme Showmen honored with new display

This year at the Putnam County Fair, new Supreme Showman winner Emily Gilley and former winners had the honor of unveiling the new and permanent display, which features Supreme Showman winners from the past 61 summers.

For 61 summers, 4-H'ers have been competing for the Supreme Showman prize at every Putnam County Fair.

Unfortunately, there has not been a permanent display for the winners of one of the most coveted prizes of each year's fair.

The event organizers and a group of sponsors changed all that at last Thursday's event, unveiling a large sign displaying the name of each winner since 1952 and each runner-up since 1996.

Sponsored by Farm Credit Services, Teachers Credit Union, CoAlliance, Tractor Supply Company, Cloverdale Agri Center, First National Bank, Farm Bureau Insurance and Collisi Trucking, the display will now hang on the north wall of the Fairgrounds Indoor Arena.

After the sign was unveiled and Emily Gilley was announced as the 2012 Putnam County Supreme Showman, all winners present were asked to join Gilley in the show ring.

Front and center for the gathering were Gilley and Ken Torr, who won the very first contest in 1952.

In between, there have been 59 other winner, approximately 30 of whom had a front row seat Thursday to the plaque that bears their names.

Supreme showmanship winners

2012: Emily Gilley, Horse & Pony

2011: Logan Pell, Horse & Pony

2010: Garrett Porter, Dairy

2009: Brock Jones, Sheep

2008: Kyle Alcorn, Beef

2007: Dakota Parent, Sheep

2006: Kalen Brattain, Swine

2005: Jordan Berry, Sheep

2004: Neal Knapp, Sheep

2003: Ashley Clifford, Beef

2002: Dustin Thornberg, Swine

2001: Rhonda Gottschalk, Beef

2000: Keri Jackson, Swine

1999: Tiffany Tippin, Beef

1998: Ryan Hendricks, Sheep

1997: Tammy Gottschalk, Swine

1996: Kyleen Jensen, Beef

1995: Paul Hodgen, Beef

1994: Sara Stanley, Beef

1993: Mike Jackson, Swine

1992: Robert Hodgen, Beef

1991: Jim Bowling, Swine

1990: Doug Parent, Beef

1989: Brent Branneman, Swine

1988: Jenny Merkel, Beef

1987: Jenny Jessup, Goat

1986: Jeff Stanley, Sheep

1985: Charles Poynter, Swine

1984: Tony Stanley, Beef

1983: Brian Williams, Beef

1982: Andy Beck, Beef

1981: Brad Davies, Swine

1980: Lisa Sutherlin, Horse & Pony

1979: Jeff Davies, Swine

1978: Jake Zaring, Beef

1977: Gary Williams, Beef

1976: Brad Cash, Dairy

1975: Jerry Torr, Beef

1974: Gordon Smith, Swine

1973: Phillip Fry, Swine

1972: Terry Tippin, Dairy

1971: David Bruner, Sheep

1970: Beverly Hurst, Sheep

1969: Steve Judy, Dairy

1968: Kent Brattain, Swine

1967: Ken Carrington, Beef

1966: Robert New, Sheep

1965: Ralph Fry, Dairy

1964: Keith Carrington, Beef

1963: Bill Judy, Dairy

1962: Noble New, Sheep

1961: Tommy Hendricks, Sheep

1960: Frank Hartman, Beef

1959: Ted Britton, Beef

1958: Neil Irwin, Swine

1957: Byron Gough, Beef

1956: Bowen Akers, Beef

1955: Charles Nicholson, Dairy

1954: Bernie Harris, Sheep

1953: Gordon Whitman, Beef

1952: Ken Torr, Beef